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- D.Utah: Minor detours to writing up a traffic ticket didn’t unreasonably extend this stop; the dog was quickly on its way
- KY: Despite lack of nexus, SW sustained under GFE
- CO: DNA could be seized from trash
- CA8: Nebraska statute allowing SWs to cross state lines doesn’t violate 4A
- WA: Sweat patch as condition of release violated state constitution’s privacy provision
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ABA Journal Web 100, Best Law Blogs (2015-17) (then discontinued)
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by John Wesley Hall
Criminal Defense Lawyer and
Search and seizure law consultant
Little Rock, Arkansas
Contact: forhall @ aol.com
Search and Seizure (6th ed. 2025)
www.johnwesleyhall.com -
© 2003-26,
online since Feb. 24, 2003 Approx. 600,000 visits (non-robot) since 2012 Approx. 50,000 posts since 2003 (29,000 on WordPress as of 12/31/25) -
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Fourth Amendment cases, citations, and links -
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To search Search and Seizure on Lexis.com $ -
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General (many free):
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Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Resources
FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide (2008) (pdf)
DEA Agents Manual (2002) (download)
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Stringrays (ACLU No. Cal.) (pdf)
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Congressional Research Service:
--Electronic Communications Privacy Act (2012)
--Overview of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (2012)
--Outline of Federal Statutes Governing Wiretapping and Electronic Eavesdropping (2012)
--Federal Statutes Governing Wiretapping and Electronic Eavesdropping (2012)
--Federal Laws Relating to Cybersecurity: Discussion of Proposed Revisions (2012)
ACLU on privacy
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Section 1983 Blog -
"If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. It isn't, and they don't."
—Me -
"Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well."
–Josh Billings (pseudonym of Henry Wheeler Shaw), Josh Billings on Ice, and Other Things (1868) (erroneously attributed to Robert Louis Stevenson, among others) -
“I am still learning.”
—Domenico Giuntalodi (but misattributed to Michelangelo Buonarroti (common phrase throughout 1500's)). -
"Love work; hate mastery over others; and avoid intimacy with the government."
—Shemaya, in the Thalmud -
"It is a pleasant world we live in, sir, a very pleasant world. There are bad people in it, Mr. Richard, but if there were no bad people, there would be no good lawyers."
—Charles Dickens, “The Old Curiosity Shop ... With a Frontispiece. From a Painting by Geo. Cattermole, Etc.” 255 (1848) -
"A system of law that not only makes certain conduct criminal, but also lays down rules for the conduct of the authorities, often becomes complex in its application to individual cases, and will from time to time produce imperfect results, especially if one's attention is confined to the particular case at bar. Some criminals do go free because of the necessity of keeping government and its servants in their place. That is one of the costs of having and enforcing a Bill of Rights. This country is built on the assumption that the cost is worth paying, and that in the long run we are all both freer and safer if the Constitution is strictly enforced."
—Williams v. Nix, 700 F. 2d 1164, 1173 (8th Cir. 1983) (Richard Sheppard Arnold, J.), rev'd Nix v. Williams, 467 US. 431 (1984). -
"The criminal goes free, if he must, but it is the law that sets him free. Nothing can destroy a government more quickly than its failure to observe its own laws, or worse, its disregard of the charter of its own existence."
—Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 659 (1961). -
"Any costs the exclusionary rule are costs imposed directly by the Fourth Amendment."
—Yale Kamisar, 86 Mich.L.Rev. 1, 36 n. 151 (1987). -
"There have been powerful hydraulic pressures throughout our history that bear heavily on the Court to water down constitutional guarantees and give the police the upper hand. That hydraulic pressure has probably never been greater than it is today."
— Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 39 (1968) (Douglas, J., dissenting). -
"The great end, for which men entered into society, was to secure their property."
—Entick v. Carrington, 19 How.St.Tr. 1029, 1066, 95 Eng. Rep. 807 (C.P. 1765) -
"It is a fair summary of history to say that the safeguards of liberty have frequently been forged in controversies involving not very nice people. And so, while we are concerned here with a shabby defrauder, we must deal with his case in the context of what are really the great themes expressed by the Fourth Amendment."
—United States v. Rabinowitz, 339 U.S. 56, 69 (1950) (Frankfurter, J., dissenting) -
"The course of true law pertaining to searches and seizures, as enunciated here, has not–to put it mildly–run smooth."
—Chapman v. United States, 365 U.S. 610, 618 (1961) (Frankfurter, J., concurring). -
"A search is a search, even if it happens to disclose nothing but the bottom of a turntable."
—Arizona v. Hicks, 480 U.S. 321, 325 (1987) -
"For the Fourth Amendment protects people, not places. What a person knowingly exposes to the public, even in his own home or office, is not a subject of Fourth Amendment protection. ... But what he seeks to preserve as private, even in an area accessible to the public, may be constitutionally protected."
—Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 351 (1967) -
“Experience should teach us to be most on guard to protect liberty when the Government’s purposes are beneficent. Men born to freedom are naturally alert to repel invasion of their liberty by evil-minded
rulers. The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.”
—United States v. Olmstead, 277 U.S. 438, 479 (1925) (Brandeis, J., dissenting)
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“Liberty—the freedom from unwarranted intrusion by government—is as easily lost through insistent nibbles by government officials who seek to do their jobs too well as by those whose purpose it is to oppress; the piranha can be as deadly as the shark.”
—United States v. $124,570, 873 F.2d 1240, 1246 (9th Cir. 1989) -
"You can't always get what you want / But if you try sometimes / You just might find / You get what you need."
—Mick Jagger & Keith Richards, Let it Bleed (album, 1969) -
"In Germany, they first came for the communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for
the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Catholic. Then they came
for me–and by that time there was nobody left to speak up."
—Martin Niemöller (1945) [he served seven years in a concentration camp] -
“Children grow up thinking the adult world is ordered, rational, fit for purpose. It’s crap. Becoming a man is realising that it’s all rotten. Realising how to celebrate that rottenness, that’s freedom.”
– John le Carré, The Night Manager (1993), line by Richard Roper -
"The point of the Fourth Amendment, which often is not grasped by zealous officers, is not that it denies law enforcement the support of the usual inferences which reasonable men draw from evidence. Its protection consists in requiring that those inferences be drawn by a neutral and detached magistrate instead of being judged by the officer engaged in the often competitive enterprise of ferreting out crime."
—Johnson v. United States, 333 U.S. 10, 13-14 (1948) -
The book was dedicated in the first (1982) and sixth (2025) editions to Justin William Hall (1975-2025). He was three when this project started in 1978.
Website design by Wally Waller, Colorado Springs. 
Category Archives: Ineffective assistance
N.D.Cal.: Strickland prejudice is subject to harmless error review
The state court post-conviction resolution of this case under § 2254 review was not unreasonable. Even if defense counsel had moved for suppression of evidence he’d stipulated to, the outcome wouldn’t have changed because of the overwhelming other evidence of … Continue reading
TN: Without affidavit for SW being in record, search issues waived
“Because the affidavit is not part of the record and because the Defendant includes no argument regarding the validity of the search warrant, we consider any challenge to the search conducted pursuant to the search warrant waived.” State v. Green, … Continue reading
DE: Vague CI information and lack of nexus to def’s home required suppression
There was no substantial basis for a finding of probable cause for this search warrant. Not only were the credibility and reliability of the informant questionable, but the tip was overly broad and made no mention of defendant’s residence and … Continue reading
OH8: When on probation for bestiality, the Humane Society can conduct probation searches
Defendant was on misdemeanor probation for bestiality with a dog. He was subject to probation searches on reasonable suspicion for whether or not he had pets in the house, and the Animal Protection League (APL) is a part of the … Continue reading
W.D.Pa.: State court’s resolution of consent issue wasn’t “unreasonable application” of precedent in 2254 proceeding
The state court’s resolution of the consent to search issue was not an “unreasonable application” of precedent in a 2254 proceeding. “In order to overcome AEDPA’s standard of review, Petitioner must show that the state court’s decision ‘cannot reasonably be … Continue reading
Army: Def’s housing was under control of the Ft. Benning Cmdr and the search authorization was valid
The search authorization by the base commander was issued with probable cause. Defendant’s housing in a separate property with Ft. Benning was part of the base and was a sub-property of the Ranger school. The commander’s authority extended to it, … Continue reading
TN: IAC claim re SW fails because SW isn’t in appellate record
Defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim about defense counsel’s handling of an alleged defective search warrant claim couldn’t be considered on appeal where nobody put the search warrant in the appellate record. Holland v. State, 2019 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS … Continue reading
ND: Refusal for BAC test came after SW and not from impled consent law
Defendant’s refusal for a BAC test didn’t come until after a warrant issued, and the implied consent law wasn’t material. State v. Nice, 2019 ND 73, 2019 N.D. LEXIS 65 (Mar. 13, 2019). Defendant moved to set aside his plea … Continue reading
CA9: Parole search ability extends to trunk of car
A parole search of the trunk of a car is still an area under the control of the defendant and subject to the search. And, CSLI before Carpenter is admissible. United States v. Korte, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 7672 (9th … Continue reading
MN: A blood sample in a lab is not “information” within the physician-patient privilege statute
A blood sample in a lab is not “information” within the physician-patient privilege statute. The state sought a search warrant for the blood sample. State v. Atwood, 2019 Minn. LEXIS 122 (Mar. 13, 2019). “[B]y the time Defendant complied with … Continue reading
M.D.N.C.: Lack of explanation of how IAC search claim would have prevailed is insufficient
2255 argument that defense counsel was ineffective for not arguing a search issue fails for not elaborating on what that argument should have been and for not including the search warrant materials. Byrd v. United States, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS … Continue reading
E.D.Tex.: Def’s stop was in 2011 and he doesn’t get the benefit of 2015’s Rodriguez
“The search in the present case occurred in 2011. Hare’s focus on Rodriguez, which was issued in 2015, is misplaced. The Fifth Circuit has ‘repeatedly held that “there is no general duty on the part of defense counsel to anticipate … Continue reading
E.D.Mich.: Not IAC to not have challenged CSLI in 2014
It wasn’t ineffective assistance for defense counsel to not have filed a motion to suppress 2014 CSLI. United States v. Littles, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34359 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 5, 2019).* In this 2255, defense counsel was not shown to … Continue reading
S.D.Fla.: IAC claim approached similar to GFE for the defense lawyer under Strickland
Defendant filed a 2255 that defense counsel was ineffective for not filing a motion to suppress the search of his RV on the curtilage in a child pornography case. The warrant mentioned curtilage. The case law goes both ways, and … Continue reading
D.Md.: A waived motion to suppress by a guilty plea, no matter the likelihood of success, is not actual innocence
The potential of a successful motion to suppress that was waived by a guilty plea is not “actual innocence” for post-conviction tolling. “Regardless, Yansane’s claim that he now has evidence of legal innocence fails because a potentially successful motion to … Continue reading
W.D.Pa.: Defense counsel’s decisions about motions to suppress are strategic under Strickland
In a post-conviction petition, defense counsel’s decisions about motions to suppress are strategic for Strickland purposes. Bagley v. United States, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31040 (W.D. Pa. Feb. 27, 2019). Defendant’s objection to the R&R for his lack of standing … Continue reading
Three on ineffective assistance claims
There’s no reasonable probability defense counsel was ineffective for not filing a motion to suppress defendant’s BAC because it wouldn’t have been granted. State v. Olsen, 2019-Ohio-568, 2019 Ohio App. LEXIS 588 (2d Dist. Feb. 15, 2019),* Petitioner’s ineffective assistance … Continue reading
OH7: Def’s one phone call from station house was on a recorded phone with a sign it was; no REP
Defendant was just arrested, and he was given his one phone call before going to jail. The call was recorded, and the sign on the wall said it was. He had no reasonable expectation of privacy in the call. State … Continue reading
CA6: OUI arrest justified search incident for visible beer cans
Defendant’s OUI arrest justified a search incident of the car for beer cans that were visible to the officer. United States v. Latham, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 4188 (6th Cir. Feb. 12, 2019). Defendant’s motion for new trial incorporates his … Continue reading